You'll never look at Australia the same way again

After seeing this picture, I'll have trouble looking at a map of Australia again, without having a little chuckle.

 

Source: Earth Pics (@Earth_Pics)

 

Spectacular Sri Lankan wedding is the world's biggest ever

Spectacular Sri Lankan wedding is the world's biggest ever - 126 bridesmaids, 25 best men, 20 page boys and 23 flower girls

Happy couple Nisansala and Nalin beat previous Thai record by 30 bridesmaids
Sri Lanka's First Lady, Shiranthi Rajapaksa - wife of the President - was guest of honour.

Wedding dress designer Champi Siriwardana said it was her dream to stage the record-breaking nuptials

 

Planning a wedding is a major undertaking for any couple... but not for Nisansala and Nalin from Sri Lanka who married this week at a Guinness World Record breaking ceremony near the capital city of Colombo.

The bride and groom had a staggering 126 bridesmaids - easily beating the previous record of 96 held by a Thai couple - all dressed by Nisansala's sister-in-law Champi Siriwardana, who first suggested they go for the world record bid.

Of course it probably helped that Champi happens to be one of the Asian island's leading wedding planners and dress designers.

Sri Lankan couple Nisansala and Nalin, centre, pose for photographs alongside their entire wedding party. The wedding was attended by Sri Lanka's First Lady

It also didn't hurt that the guest of honour was Sri Lanka's First Lady, Shiranthi Rajapaksa, wife of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The spectacular ceremony was elaborately staged at the Avendra Gardens in Negombo, 30 kms from Colombo in front of hundreds of family and friends.

All of the wedding party - bride, groom, 126 bridesmaids, 25 best men, 20 page boys and 23 flower girls - were dressed in richly embroidered traditional costumes in shades of purple and gold.

Held under strict Guinness Book of World Record conditions, the wedding breaks the previous record, held by a wedding in Bangkok, Thailand, that included 96 bridesmaids. 

'Breaking the Guinness world record is no mean feat and one that I cannot achieve alone,' said Champi, who suggested the world record attempt. 'It is a great responsibility and challenge. There can be no mistakes.'

Sri Lankan wedding couple Nisansala, right and Nalin pose for photographers in front of their massive bridal party, dressed in purple and gold

 Champi was so confident of Nisansala and Nalin's world record, she held a press conference before the big day to announce the event.

'My dream is to create an impact not only in Sri Lanka but internationally as well,' said Champi. Job done, Champi. As for the happy couple... the pictures speak for themselves.

 

A best man looks on during the wedding ceremony of Sri Lankan couple Nisansala and Nalin - there were 25 best men in all

Sri Lankan wedding couple Nisansala, right and Nalin pose on the steps of their wedding venue in Negombo, 30kms from Colombo the capital city

Sri Lankan couple Nisansala, right, and Nalin smile as they are greeted by guests during their world record wedding

Sri Lankan couturier - and the person who dreamed up the world record attempt - Champi Siriwardana, left, receives her Guinness World Record award from Guinness official Seyda Subasi Gemici during the wedding of couple Nisansala and Nalin

Best men and bridesmaids pose for a photo during the ceremony. There were 126 bridesmaids, 25 best men, accompanied by 20 page boys and 23 flower girls

Sri Lankan couple Nisansala and Nalin pour water into small pots as part of a traditional ceremony

Guinness Book of World Records wedding couple Nisansala and Nalin with their huge bridal party at their venue in Negombo, north of Colombo

Source: Daily Mail, UK

The World, The Intelligent, The Stupid

 

The intelligent know that they may not have all the answers; the stupid are blissful in their ignorance.

Telephones and Darwin

Isn't evolution wonderful?

That moment when your shadow is having more fun than you.

That moment when your shadow is having far more fun than you:

First-Ever Submarine Dive on Vancouver's "Living Fossils": Glass Sponge Reefs

Researchers discover a seafloor oasis made of hundreds of glass sponges.

 

Howe Sound, British Columbia—Through the submersible's acrylic viewport, a large patch of glass sponges looms up from the seafloor of Howe Sound (map), a network of fjords located on Vancouver's doorstep. The sponges glow creamy white and orange under the sub's high-intensity lamps and extend across a 40-foot-high (12.2-meter-high) mound.

This week, the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) and Nuytco Research mounted the first submarine expedition to the glass sponge reefs found in Georgia Strait off of Vancouver.

The expedition aims to check on the status of these sponge reefs, which currently have no protection from damage by fishing activities, and to raise awareness of their existence.

The Howe Sound reef—which Aquarius will explore over the course of six dives—was first discovered in 2008, making it the most recently discovered sponge reef in southern British Columbia.
Glass sponges are found across the globe. But only along British Columbia's continental shelf do they grow over the skeletons of their dead ancestors to form massive deepwater reefs. This buildup is thanks to high levels of dissolved silica, which the sponges use to build their glass skeletons, and strong currents of cold water laden with nutrients.

"The sponge communities provide refuge for juvenile fish and they have a large filtering capacity, so they provide an important ecological function," says Bruce Reid, regional manager of Fisheries and Oceans Canada in Vancouver.

READ THE FULL STORY BY ANNE CASSELMAN HERE AT NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

 

A Time-Lapse Map of Every Nuclear Explosion Since 1945

A Time-Lapse Map of Every Nuclear Explosion Since 1945 by Japanese artist Isao Hashimoto.

Japanese artist Isao Hashimoto has created a beautiful, undeniably scary time-lapse map of the 2053 nuclear explosions which have taken place between 1945 and 1998, beginning with the Manhattan Project’s “Trinity” test near Los Alamos and concluding with Pakistan’s nuclear tests in May of 1998. This leaves out North Korea’s two alleged nuclear tests in this past decade (the legitimacy of both of which is not 100% clear).

Each nation gets a blip and a flashing dot on the map whenever they detonate a nuclear weapon, with a running tally kept on the top and bottom bars of the screen. Hashimoto, who began the project in 2003, says that he created it with the goal of showing”the fear and folly of nuclear weapons.” It starts really slow — if you want to see real action, skip ahead to 1962 or so — but the buildup becomes overwhelming.

http://www.ctbto.org/specials/1945-1998-by-isao-hashimoto/

Read more http://www.trueactivist.com/gab_gallery/a-time-lapse-map-of-every-nuclear-explosion-since-1945/